>> before the bombing, were you told that he posted radical jihadist video websites online? >> no, mr. chairman, we were not aware of the two brothers. we were in the aware of tamerlan's activities. >> and, again, would you like to have known that fact? >> yes, sir. >> the idea that the feds have this information, and it is not shared with the state and locals defies, you know, why we created the department of homeland security in the first place. >> and then there is benghazi backlash. house speaker john boehner calls on the president to release e-mails related to the attacks. >> the white house has done everything possible to block access to the information that would outline the truth. and the question you have to ask is why. >> and the prime minister of turkey tells nbc's ann curry syria president assad has used

chemical weapons. >> has syrian president assad used chemical weapons? >> translator: it is clear the regime has used chemical weapons, missiles. they use about 200 missiles according to our intelligence. it can be even more, but not less. >> you can tell we have a packed show. erdogan, a key player in syria. i'm chuck todd in for andrea mitchell. it is what some are calling the face of evil, accused cleveland kidnapping suspect ariel castro appears in court for first time since a daring escape for those three women who said they were held captive in his home for nearly a decade. >> the situation has turned, your honor, mr. castro stands before you a captive, the women are free to resume their lives that were interrupted. and also with the promise and

the hope that justice will be served. >> the details of the alleged crime are too graphic even for cable television. from the women's own account, we are hearing harrowing stories of beating, starvation, forced miscarriages, five of them with michelle knight. two of the women spent the night at home with their families for first time in a decade. gina dejesus was whisked in her house yesterday afternoon, giving a thumbs up to cheering neighbors and we expected to hear from amanda berry herself yesterday, but she instead asked her sister to thank well wishers cam camped outside their home. craig melvin, we learn that the police found a suicide note in the suspect's home. is there any indication what that note said? >> reporter: no indication, chuck. all that we are hearing from investigators is that the note itself was written by ariel castro in 2004. they wouldn't give us a lot of details about some of the evidence that was laid out other

than to say castro said in a note he was a victim of abuse as a child. i want to introduce you to a fellow named ricky sanchez. ricky sanchez played in the same band as ariel castro. and i understand you went in that house and spent a fair amount of time with castro on a regular basis. is that right? >> that's right. we don't play in the same band. he's a bass player. i'm a bass player. >> you were in the house last thursday? >> i was in the house last thursday. >> what did you see? >> when i went inside the house, when i walked inside the house, just like a regular -- like any other day, you know, like a house, you know, like when i -- his tv, he has the equipment, his basses, about 45 minutes after we been playing, i saw little girl coming in. >> you sought 6-year-old. >> 6-year-old. he said she was his granddaughter. >> he said -- he told you the 6-year-old was his granddaughter? >> exactly. >> is that first time you had ever seen her? >> that's the first time i see

that girl. >> did you ever see any of the other three women in the house? >> i had never. never seen those girls. never hear any scream. >> how many times had you gone in the house? >> been going to the house since 2001. >> and when you saw the reports a few days ago, about what was allegedly going on inside that house, did you ever think, man, i missed something? >> yeah, i was in shock. i thought he was the best actor in the world. he never show his face any type, like, i'm doing something wrong, he is still inviting people coming into the house. for something like this. he's doing -- >> what was he like as a person? was he angry? >> no, no, no. he was a very nice guy. he keep smile on his face, every time he had, like, he bought a new bass, because we were bass players, he used to call me all the time, ricky, come over, i show you something i just bought. if i have a bass guitar like the one i have now, he saw it on

facebook and he -- >> what brought you back to the house today? >> here? >> yeah. why did you come back to the house today? >> i want you to know, i mean, there was -- more information, you know, might help you know? >> okay. ricky sanchez, ricky sanchez, again, knew ariel castro, knew him since 1996 and was in that house of horrors, just last thursday. thank you for your time, ricky. >> thank you very much. >> i want you to tell me about another event that will take place in the neighborhood tonight, community leaders meeting with members of the community and what could be a pretty tense situation. tell me about it. >> reporter: yeah. very well could be. we're told that community leaders, we're told that law enforcement officials, we're told that lots of folks from this neighborhood are going to gather in the church behind me tonight at 7:00 and what is being called a public forum, an opportunity for folks here to express some of the concerns that they have been expressing

to members of the media over the past few days. remember, chuck, again, there are a number of people who insisted they called 911 and law enforcement has continued their pushback, also insisting they essentially never got these calls. so that could very well come to a head tonight at 7:00 and 4:00 this afternoon there is going to be a news conference being held by the prosecutor in this case, where we could find out even more details about some of the evidence. some 200 pieces of evidence were taken out of the house. >> pretty compelling interview you had with ricky sanchez, nice work. we'll be back, thank you, sir. moving on to boston at a hearing today on the boston bombing, the investigation itself, boston's top cop is warning that every city needs to be better prepared to keep americans safe at big public events like the boston marathon. >> boston is an international city. and we derive an enormous benefit from the people who come to boston for school and for

hospital care and just to be part of our community. but the world is a dangerous place. and think we need to recognize that and be prepared for it. >> let's bring in pete williams, justice correspondent, following this investigation. the hearing. he is a couple floors below me in the d.c. bureau. what do you think was learned today about sort of the interaction between the feds and the boston police department? >> after the bombing, the police commissioner said it was wonderful. before the bombing, he said that he wished he had known that the russians had complained or raised questions about tamerlan tsarnaev, the older of the two suspects, he said he did not know that they had asked questions to the fbi, that he did not know that the joint task force members had interviewed them. he did not know that he had gone to tamerlan tsarnaev had gone to russia and come back. he said it would have been good to know all those things. he also said, even if he had known them, he's not sure he would have done anything

differently. but there was several members of -- who testified today and including former senator joseph lieberman, who said it would have been a good idea to get the local police involved because even if the fbi closed off its threat assessment as it did, the local police had they known about it could have kept an eye on them. so lots of what would have happened, though the boston police commissioner said, you know, it would have been good to know this, but impossible to know now whether it would have made any difference. couple of other interesting things came out of the hearing, chuck, the commissioner said that after the fbi made pictures of the two suspects public, nobody from any mosques that tamerlan tsarnaev attended called in to say that he sure looks like the bombing suspect, nor were there any calls the police commissioner said from classmates of dzhokhar tsarnaev at the university of massachusetts at dartmouth. >> there was one other comment i wanted to play and get your reaction to, and reporting on as

well. something michael mccaul said about the idea of what the foreign aspect to this attack was about. here's the clip. >> we don't know if this attack was foreign directed, we certainly know it was foreign inspired. tamerlan tsarnaev's trip to the chechen region, the radical videos proclaiming the caliphate he posted when he returned and the types of bombs that he, his younger brother used, all signal an al qaeda-inspired terrorist attack. >> so, pete, the implication is clear, he's saying that there seems to be some sort of foreign influence here. but has there been any evidence turned up yet in the investigation that confirms that implication. >> only this, chuck, that they have found on the computer, in the house, copies of the al qaeda magazine inspire. dzhokhar tsarnaev, the younger suspect, has said that they

viewed sermeview ed sermons online of the english speaking propagandist who was killed in a u.s. drone attack and other materials from al qaeda. i don't think there is any doubt that investigators believe that they were inspired by those statements, and got guidance on how to build their bombs from inspire magazine. >> all right, pete williams on this investigation. thank you, sir. >> you bet. today, president obama is on his way to texas. the second time in two week he's been there. this time, though, he'll be in austin, first stop in what the white house says is going to be a series of events that call on helping the middle class jobs and opportunity tour, they're calling it. joining me now is gene sperling, the president's top economic adviser. good afternoon to you, sir. >> good afternoon. thanks for having us. >> it is interesting. this has been one of the overlooked stories of the week

is the dow 15,000. and a lot of various economic indicators are moving in the right direction, except the jobs numbers. there is still a stagnation feeling. is this a -- is it fair to say we're in the midst of a jobless recovery? do you accept that premise? >> not at all. indeed, we have been averaging over 2 million jobs a year. the way i would put it is to say that we are creating jobs at a very solid pace, that would probably be good enough in most situations. but because we are coming back from the deepest recession our country has had since the great depression, solid is not good enough. we want to see more momentum, more strength, and we really believe we're capable of that. i think one of the reasons that the president is, you know, fighting so hard on his economic policies is that we believe that if we could have more sensible

policies, more compromise in washington, d.c., that we could actually be seeing much stronger job growth in a couple of ways. one, we right now have a sequester in place that every expert thinks is costing us hundreds of thousands of jobs. if you replace that with something that was dealt with the long-term fiscal situation, but still made room for us to invest in infrastructure and job creating things right now, and also was a smart budget, that gave us room to do things like with the president is talking about today in austin, which is invest in the new high schools of the future, and in manufacturing innovation hubs that will help make us a magnet for job creation and help lead us for what we hope can be a real comeback in renaissance and manufacturing in our country. >> none of that happens without a big budget deal and as you know, a couple of days ago, you were among five people i interviewed on the fiscal issue, at the peterson foundation. before i spoke to you, i had

spoken to paul ryan about the idea of a grand barrigain. here is what he said. >> i don't think we'll have a grand bargain. that implies you'll fix the problem. when you have a majority party in washington unwilling to embrace the kinds of reforms that make medicare solvent or social security solvent, i don't see a grand bargaining happening. >> there you go. the chief negotiator at this point for the house republicans says no grand bargain. what do you say? >> i'm not going to get into a semantic argument about what is a grand or great or big or medium bargain. here's what's clear. the president of the united states has pointed to a path forward, a sensible path, of bipartisan compromise. he has contrary to what chairman ryan said shown that he is willing to deal with very difficult long-term entitlement issues, that he's willing to detach reform, that raises revenue to reduce the deficit, and that he's willing to do na a context of a budget agreement that is about growth and jobs

and competitiveness. and there is really no reason for anyone to be, i think, being pessimistic because that's just creating a problem that doesn't have to exist. the reality is people -- but, chuck, the reality is the president has shown waili inwil to compromise. if chairman ryan and the republican leadership is willing to give a little, to be willing to understand that if you're doing a budget agreement that has long-term entitlements, it has got to have some revenues contribute to deficit reduction as well, if they're willing to have that type of compromise, whether you call it a grand bargain or a sensible budget agreement, we can move the country forward in a way that is creating jobs right now, that is allowing us to invest in manufacturing and skills and our future and giving confidence to investors and long-term job creators that they should still be making their future in the united states of america. >> gene, i can't help but notice that you said, well, maybe it is

not a grand bargain, maybe it is a small this or medium that. does that mean there is various degrees of some agreement that could happen between now and october that maybe you don't get the giant deal that you hoepd for, but maybe it is a sequest rear placement plus, maybe something else. is that what you're saying, all of those various aspects are on the table? >> i think you missed my point there, i'm not going toing to get into the business of trying to interpret what paul ryan's view of how he defines a bargain. what we know is that a sensible agreement would get rid of this harmful sequester that is costing us jobs right now. it would be balanced and fair. and it would be designed in a way that allows us to be creating jobs and giving this recovery momentum and it would be designed in a way that while we're dealing with difficult long-term entitlement and revenue issues through tax reform, that we're not crowding out our ability to invest in manufacturing, innovation, in the type of things that has

always been the hallmark of american competitiveness going forward. >> all right, gene sperling, i have to leave it there. thank you, sir. >> thank you. >> gene sperling, president of the president's national economic council. daily fix is up after the break. we're at the exclusive el chorro lodge in paradise valley, arizona where, tonight, we switched their steaks with walmart's choice premium steak. it's a steakover! this was perfect. it was really good! one of the best filets i've had. see, look how easy that is to cut. these are perfectly aged

for flavor and tenderness. you're eating walmart steaks. really? shut up! oh, is that right? are you serious? best steak i'd ever had! i would definitely go to walmart and buy steaks. walmart choice premium steak in the black package. try it! it's 100% satisfaction guaranteed. ♪ now you can give yourself a kick in the rear! v8 v-fusion plus energy. natural energy from green tea plus fruits and veggies. need a little kick? ooh! could've had a v8. in the juice aisle. by going low. tdd# 1-800-345-2550 like offering schwab etfs tdd# 1-800-345-2550 with the lowest operating expenses tdd# 1-800-345-2550 in their respective lipper categories -- tdd# 1-800-345-2550 lower than ishares tdd# 1-800-345-2550 and vanguard. tdd# 1-800-345-2550 and with all our etfs commission-free tdd# 1-800-345-2550 when traded online in a schwab account, tdd# 1-800-345-2550 it leaves our investors with more money to invest. tdd# 1-800-345-2550 something they've come to count on with us. tdd# 1-800-345-2550 so as investors continue to set their portfolio goals high, tdd# 1-800-345-2550 we help keep their costs of investing low. tdd# 1-800-345-2550 give us a call and open an account today. tdd# 1-800-345-2550

carefully consider prospectus information, including tdd# 1-800-345-2550 investment objectives, risks, charges, and expenses. tdd# 1-800-345-2550 request a prospectus by calling schwab at 800-435-4000. tdd# 1-800-345-2550 read it carefully before investing. tdd# 1-800-345-2550 fees and expenses apply. tdd# 1-800-345-2550 investing involves risks, including loss of principal. tdd# 1-800-345-2550

seeing this tv ad paid for by new york city mayor michael bloomberg, don't believe it. kelly ayotte voted for a bipartisan plan to make background checks more effective. here's her vote. ayotte voted for a bipartisan plan to reform our broken mental health system. ayotte voted for more resources to prosecute criminals who use guns. kelly ayotte stands with prosecutors and police for new hampshire values.

>> interesting new ad there. new hampshire senator kelly ayotte felt the political sting of tv ads from gun control groups led by michael bloomberg and gabby giffords. the nra is coming to her defense. that was the new ad that is geared toward granite state v e vot voters. no mention of second amendment rights. joining me susan paige. that's the type of nra ad you do not normally see, which is they're not talking about second amendment rights, not talking about a gun culture, not talking about those thins, but trying to beat back and almost embrace the same things that the gun control groups claim they want. >> right. very strategic. it is much less sort of an ideological plea for gun rights than it is to say, look, people are saying bad things about kelly ayotte, but here are the

good things she did. it is the kind of ad, to be honest, usually a candidate runs as opposed to a committee or an outside organization that tends to be like the nra organized around a single issue. i remember three months ago we were talking -- i think on tv, might not have been, it all blurs, about how michael bloomberg was the worst possible spokesman in the swing states and in places like arkansas or new hampshire or louisiana. it is fascinating to me the nra ad does among other things immediately have the picture of michael bloomberg says -- it shows you people who think mike bloomberg can be elected president. there is a reason he's in that ad. >> that's right. susan paige, i want to put up the pew poll. here is another counterconventional wisdom. nra not playing to type in that type of ad they have done in the past. and then this new pew poll, which party could do a better job on gun control, more people

picked republicans and democrats. 42% plurality and this is not a majority, but that sort of -- talk about a counter and the whole background check thing that has been used as a bludgeon on some of these folks, this is never as cut and dry of an issue as i think some in the political community want it to be. >> that's right. that is a surprising finding. and but what that -- kelly ayotte ad tells you, the ad by the nra tells you, she must be pretty -- if joe manchin could tweak the expanded background gun check bill to give her a little cover to change her vote on that, it sounds like she might be, well inclined to do that. if you got one republican senator to switch, like kelly ayotte, then possibly the four democrats that voted against it would also find a reason to change their votes and then you have reached that 60 vote limit in the senate that they failed to reach before, but you still have a big battle in the house. but i think that ad does tell

you that the nra and the supporters of the nra at least in the place like new hampshire having trouble defending the vote she cast on expanded gun background checks. >> i agree with you there. that shows it is not like i said not the nra playing the type, but shows you they're being sensitive, reading poll numbers that have them concerned. i want to move on. a report from the census bureau out. the nonwhite coalition becoming more and more important to the democratic party's success. this is -- african-american turnout percentage steadily increasing, percentage of african-americans that vote in elections steadily increasing since '96, the white turnout has been falling since 2004. this is not something that is only a phenomenon having to do with barack obama, but it is a trend that is pretty important nonetheless that for first time ever, african-american turnout rate higher than white americans. >> it is -- look, it is most

basic point ever, chuck. how do you know who wins elections? it depends who votes. if hispanics -- i look at number. to me, i think you're right about african-americans being -- it is clearly sort of a significant moment, but look at the 48% hispanic number. look at the number of people in the hispanic population under 18, people who become of age to vote, the fact they remain heavily underrepresented in terms of the voter rolls as a function of their population numbers. that, to me, you look at that number and say, 71% barack obama won with hispanics in 2012. if he -- if the next democrat comes anywhere close to that number, they start off with a massive 2016 advantage. >> and susan paige, 48% was the turnout rate among hispanics. 52% on the sideline. a majority in 2016. that's something that has to keep priebus awake at night.

>> huge room to grow. in 2012, the actual number of white voters declined. there were a million more white people who could vote in 2012. but the votes cast were 2 million less than cast in 2008. now, that's not something maybe democrats can count on because romney perhaps had a little trouble generating a lot of enthusiasm among the white voters. but that tells you something about a changing america, an america that is going to look quite different in the future than it looked in the past. and lots of warning signs there for republicans who struggled so far to reach hispanic. and even asian-americans, another rising group in the american electorate. >> you wonder if republicans regret drawing these people out of their house districts, so that they don't have to figure out how to court these voters. and it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. susan paige, chris, thank you,

both. >> thank you, chuck. chris christie back on youtube. another comedy bit. this time he invited a few friends to join in. look at this, the celebrities, falling all over themselves to participate in this. bon jovi, joe and mika, alec baldwin. >> sir, we have a problem. >> what now? >> the fleece, sir. it's missing. >> so what? so what? what's the big deal? you're worrying too much. stop worrying. >> i don't think you fully understand the implications this is going to have on your brand. >> welcome back to "morning joe." it has been called the greatest collapse in modern american history. we can only be talking about one man, governor chris christie, a man who had the midas touch. >> hey, hey, jon, it's chris. jon, it's chris.

>> hey. there is that guy again. he ain't nothing without his fleece. >> no, i don't know anything about any kind of fleece. oh, okay. yeah, if i hear anything, i'll let you know. hey, hey, hey, he's looking for that fleece jacket. you know the one you liked that goes so good with that yankees cap that you have. i'm not going to say nothing. [ female announcer ] stress sweat is different than ordinary sweat. it smells worse. get 4x the protection against stress sweat. introducing new secret clinical strength stress response scent. a regular guy with an irregular heartbeat. the usual, bob? not today. [ male announcer ] bob has afib: atrial fibrillation not caused by a heart valve problem, a condition that puts him at greater risk for a stroke. [ gps ] turn left. i don't think so. [ male announcer ] for years, bob took warfarin, and made a monthly trip to the clinic to get his blood tested.

but not anymore. bob's doctor recommended a different option: once-a-day xarelto®. xarelto® is the first and only once-a-day prescription blood thinner for patients with afib not caused by a heart valve problem, that doesn't require routine blood monitoring. like warfarin, xarelto® is proven effective to reduce the risk of an afib-related stroke. there is limited data on how these drugs compare when warfarin is well managed. no routine blood monitoring means bob can spend his extra time however he likes. new zealand! xarelto® is just one pill a day, taken with the evening meal. and with no dietary restrictions, bob can eat the healthy foods he likes. do not stop taking xarelto® rivaroxaban without talking to the doctor who prescribes it for you. stopping may increase your risk of having a stroke. get medical help right away if you develop any signs or symptoms of bleeding, like unusual bruising or tingling. you may have a higher risk of bleeding if you take xarelto® with aspirin products, nsaids or blood thinners. talk to your doctor before taking xarelto®

if you currently have abnormal bleeding. xarelto® can cause bleeding, which can be serious, and rarely may lead to death. you are likely to bruise more easily on xarelto®, and it may take longer for bleeding to stop. tell your doctors you are taking xarelto® before any planned medical or dental procedures. before starting xarelto®, tell your doctor about any conditions, such as kidney, liver or bleeding problems. ready to change your routine? ask your doctor about once-a-day xarelto®. for more information including cost support options, call 1-888-xarelto or visit goxarelto.com.

finger pointing continued at yesterday's benghazi hearings where gregory hicks testified that he was demoted after questioning the state department response toot ta response to the attack. john boehner is calling on the president to release confidential e-mails related to the initial response. >> somebody clearly decided they didn't like the references to islamic terrorism. and made changes in this

document. the american people deserve the truth. and they will get the truth. >> joining me now is former u.s. ambassador nicholas burns, now professor at the harvard kennedy school and a global post columnist. ambassador burns, nice to see you. >> thanks, chuck. >> well, what did -- what did you learn yesterday from the benghazi hearings that you didn't know going in? >> well, chuck, i would say this first, i think congress has a right, an obligation to ask questions. we lost four fine public servants. we have to learn the lessons of what went wrong in benghazi. what did we learn? i don't think the facts have changed. there was some compelling testimony and i know quite sincere yesterday by the three gentlemen questioned and all good public servants, but i don't think the facts have changed since the investigations of last autumn, since the accountability review board led by both ambassador tom pickering and admiral mike mullen, the facts are that it was a terrible tragedy, that there were lapses of leadership at the state department, that's what the accountability review board said.

but as to a cover-up, i don't see it. i don't seat evidene the evideny kind of cover-up on this. and as far the charge that somehow the u.s. military could have come to the rescue, could have provided direct military support deployments, special forces, general dempsey and every other military expert says the timeline just didn't work, there wasn't enough time in those 12 hours to get people there. so i don't think there is much new here. >> you don't believe there is evidence that states slow walked its response a little bit on this at the beginning? >> i don't know every aspect of this. i'm just a private citizen watching this as you are. so i can't speak for every interaction, but i do know this. i know ambassador pickering well, i know admiral mullen well and they're great public servants and they looked at this with a critical eye. their report was tough on the state department in many ways, but it didn't indicate that the state department leadership, secretary clinton or anyone else, was trying to impede the

investigation or trying to stall it. there is no evidence to that that i can see. >> what should change when it comes to diplomatic security? >> diplomatic security in an age of terrorism, especially in a place in the middle east where we had a number of terrorist attacks, has to be job number one. it always has been for the last 15 or 20 years. obviously we're going to have to look at consulates in the arab world, places like benghazi, where we don't have adequate resources to fully staff a place. and answer the question, is it worth to have the presence on the ground versus the risk entailed. and there is no blanket answer here. the state department will have to look at each of these cases individually to determine in the future whether we ought to be in a place or not. our diplomats have to do their job and they have to be given the room to do their job. also there are times when you have to pull back a little bit to protect people and that's going to be on a case by case

basis. >> ann curry, my colleague had an exclusive with the turkish prime minister erdogan on the issue of syria. i want to play a clip here on the issue of syrian chemical weapons. here it is. >> so, has president assad crossed president obama's red line? >> translator: a long time ago. it is not now. it has been passed long time ago. and right from the beginning, there were warnings, they never responded to them. they never responded positively. and always they reacted in contrary, and because in his own memories, he had different things in his mind. >> ambassador, prime minister erdogan is giving voice to what a lot of us have been hearing behind the scenes about how the jordanians feel, not just about how the turks feel, but the jordanians, the saudis, some of the other gulf states, that

president obama made the red line, drew that red line, and hasn't followed up as fast as they would like. >> well, my own view for what it is worth is that if you make it -- when you make a decision to use military force, if that's what's in question here, you have to be sure of the facts. we learned this lesson in iraq in 2003. if president obama is going to take a couple of weeks to make sure that we have evidence that syria used chemical weapons, to me, that's the right decision because our credibility rests on the charges that we make. and so we have to be absolutely sure. having said that, when you do draw a line in the sand and dare someone, especially in the middle east, across it, if he or she does, then you have to respond, i think credibility is important here. and i know the administration is trying to think, how do we respond, is it arming the moderate rebels, is it a series of air strikes against assad's military assets in order to

degrade them. i think the united states if it does decide the chemical weapons have been used, i think we have to act in some limited fashion! university to keep assad on at defensive here. >> quickly, how much pressure, though, is the united states under if the israeli intelligence reports are true that the russians are about to send some new antiaircraft weaponry to assad? >> that would just be the height of hypocrisy if russia did that after what president putin and lavrov agreed to, a conference to bring this to a political transition to avoid further -- >> they're doing this behind their back. >> if it is true, if the russians are doing that, hypocrisy is something the united states will have to oppose. >> nicholas burns, thanks for coming on. >> thank you. up next, dinner diplomacy. this time, it was with house democrats for president obama. we'll have steny hoyer here up next to tell us about it.

nobody insures more bikes than progressive. do you guys ride? well... no. sometimes, yeah. yes. well, if you know anybody else who also rides, send them here -- we got great coverage. it's not like bikers love their bikes more than life itself.

i doubt anyone will even notice. leading the pack in motorcycle insurance. now, that's progressive. call or click today.

president obama has been doing a lot of outreach to congress lately. and he's been having a lot of dinners. last night, the dinner with some house democrats, one of them joining me now, maryland congressman and house minority whip steny hoyer. nice to see you. >> good to be with you. >> one thing i was surprised to learn this morning, talking to jim clyburn, this morning, about the dinner. he said the issue of chain cpi and the idea of the changing -- basically the unpopular parts of the president's budgets among house democrats really wasn't a big part of the conversation. what was a big part of the conversation? >> jobs, economic growth, fiscal stability, jobs was clearly on the president's mind and his

focus. economic growth of our country and getting us on a fiscally stable path. we talked a lot about all of the other issues that are being considered in the congress. we talked about making it an american agenda, about jobs, growth and manufacturing, expanding exports. we also talked about, as you would not be surprised, about gun violence. and also about immigration. we spent a significant time on immigration and on jobs. and i think they were probably the two major subjects that we considered, but we just discussed the whole gamut of issues confronting the -- very positive meeting. >> was he making the case of saying you might not like some of the things i'll compromise on, but stick with me? was he asking for that kind of help? >> it didn't come up in that context. i think there was an expression of support by all the members

there. there were eight of us there. i think the president knows we're supportive of him. that doesn't mean we agree with him on everything or he agrees with us on everything, every point, but on the big issues there was agreement and we expressed support and look forward to continuing to work closely with him to get our country where we think it needs to be. >> there is going to be potentially an issue of the debt ceiling and now looks like it will be in the fall at the summer, that's good news. everything -- economy is picking up, tax receipts, that all -- the fact that it has been pushed off is good news. but the issue of whether the debt ceiling becomes a trigger to force negotiations was a question i had for rob portman during the fiscal summit earlier this week. here is what he said. debt ceiling, september, october, is it going to be a crisis when it comes up? and if so, do you actually need it -- is it going to be needed as the trigger to force the talks? >> yes. it is going to be a crisis and it is needed? >> yes. every single one of the half

dozen proposals that worked to reduce spending in congress in the last three decades has come out of this same process. >> steny hoyer. you've been in this town as long as rob portman, perhaps longer. you agree with his analysis that the debt ceiling fair or not has been the trigger to force these big deals when they happened? >> i agree with him that i think historically there has been surrounding the debt ceiling from time to time other issues that have been associated with the debt limit in terms of consideration. what i don't agree with him is that this is analogous to other situations. after all, for the first time in 2011, when they took us to the brink, they being the republicans, took us to the brink of default, that was the first time in history that we had been downgraded, the first time the crisis was really perceived to be real in the sense that a party or a group in the party, and in this case, the

republican party thought that the default was an acceptable alternative that you could take the national debt, the credit worthiness of the united states, hostage, in order to accomplish an objective. one thing we discussed last night, chuck, was that neither the president nor ourselves are going to be intimidated or held hostage by the debt limit, the debt limit is for obligations we have already incurred. and taking it hostage and saying the most credit worthy nation on earth won't pay its bill is not an acceptable alternative. so to that extent, i agree with rob. there is no doubt that the republicans have decided once again to use the debt limit as a hostage to policies they want to pursue. >> all right. steny hoyer, house democratic whip, thanks for coming on. >> you bet, chuck. >> all right. coming up, more on the syrian humanitarian crisis and more from cleveland.

alex garza of dallas runs four pizza patron franchises, targeting the booming hispanic market. he says latino customers are attracted by the friendly bilingual staff and his products unique flafvors like a jalapeno pizza. we've all had those moments. when you lost the thing you can't believe you lost. when what you just bought, just broke. or when you have a little trouble a long way from home... as an american express cardmember you can expect some help. but what you might not expect, is you can get all this with a prepaid card. spends like cash. feels like membership.

since aflac is helping with his expenses while he can't work, he can focus on his recovery. he doesn't have to worry so much about his mortgage, groceries, or even gas bills. kick! kick... feel it! feel it! feel it! nice work! ♪ you got it! you got it! yes! aflac's gonna help take care of his expenses. and us...we're gonna get him back in fighting shape. ♪ [ male announcer ] see what's happening behind the scenes at ducktherapy.com.

secretary of state john kerry announced an additional $100 million to aid syrian refugees. more than 1 million syrians have fled the country since the conflict began. but within syria, there are more than 4 million internally displaced people. welcome. >> thank you. >> we were talking before we came on air, how much is this program about helping the jeerian refugjeer i syrian refugees outside of syria. >> we fed 2.3 million people. outside syria, the five countries around syria, we fed another 800,000 people. the challenge is that those people who are inside syria are primarily about 70% of those are internally displaced. which means they moved three and

four times just inside the country. >> where are they staying? you were in the region. explain the conditions. >> inside syria, you have people living in schools, you have them living under bridges, living in abandoned buildings, families living together with as many people as they can get into a space, trying to just find safety. >> and is it -- are these people -- is there just no -- the government is blocking food, what is the -- is the government basically preventing these folks from being able to even get the basics? >> well, here's reality. syria is three areas now. there is the control area, the government controlled areas, there is the opposition controlled areas and there are conflict areas. areas we work with about 19 ngos to move into those areas. in a conflict controlled area, the bullet doesn't say i came from the government our came from the opposition.

so you can't get into those areas. throws the hardest areas where people are in the most need. >> what kind of, who is protecting you guys as you go in there? is there any sort of security for you as you go in there? does there need to be? >> i work with some of the bravest people in the world. >> clearly. >> and we work with some of the strongest ngos. we have no protection and they're driving into these areas and we have people who are in trucks, they're in armored vehicles. when our staff is out there. if you're in a truck, and that is delivering food. >> tell me about the conditions of these refugee camp that's are essentially developing, a lot of them in jordan, turkey. you were telling me iraq, egypt, and a fifth country. >> these are in lebanon. in turkey, we have, they're all in refugee camps and there's a mixture of containers which are literally boxes that people are

living in. and tents. in jordan, it is containers and tents as well. in lebanon, there are no camps. they all live with host families or they live, some of them live in abandoned buildings. you find five families renting one house. and in iraq, they're in refugee camps as well. but i've sat in a container in jordan with a family who owned a business before they -- >> these are middle class people. they're angry people. because it would be as if you and i were suddenly found ourselves living with our entire family. >> and you're wondering, where is the cavalry. they're wondering where they're going to eat. it has been the generosity that has helped us ensure that we've been able to provide assistance. right now this is costing us about $19 million a week. >> you are running this program

for the united nations. thank you. >> thank you. we'll be right back with more from cleveland before we leave the hour. here at the hutchison household. but one dark stormy evening... there were two things i could tell: she needed a good meal and a good family. so we gave her what our other cats love, purina cat chow complete. it's the best because it has something for all of our cats! and after a couple of weeks she was healthy, happy, and definitely part of the family. we're so lucky that lucy picked us. [ female announcer ] purina cat chow complete. always there for you. [ female announcer ] purina cat chow complete. for sein a whole new way. for seeing what cash is coming in and going out... so you can understand every angle of your cash flow- last week, this month, and even next year. for seeing your business's cash flow like never before, introducing cash flow insight powered by pnc cfo. a suite of online tools that lets you turn insight into action.

let's get a recap, merv. [ merv ] thanks, other merv. mr. clean magic eraser extra power was three times faster on permanent marker. elsewhere against dirt, it was a sweep, with scuffed sports equipment... had it coming. grungy phones... oh! super dirty! and grimy car rims... wow! that really works! ...all taking losses. it looks like mr. clean has won everything. the cleaning games are finished? and so are we. okay, but i just took a mortgage out on the cabinet. [ male announcer ] clean more, work less, with the mr. clean magic eraser extra power.

a busy day here in washington. a bidsy hour on "andrea mitchell reports" and we're out of time so that does it for this hour of "andrea mitchell reports." i'm chuck todd. andrea will be back soon. tamron hall has a look at what's next on "news nation." >> now that she's been found guilty, will jodi arias be sentenced to die for murdering her boyfriend? she is back in court in a couple of hours. arias told a tv station shortly after being convicted that she would prefer to die sooner than later. nbc legal analyst star jones will join us. plus, bail set at $8 million for accused kidnapper ariel castro will we're learning more about an alleged suicide note he wrote in 2004. clint van zandt will join us and major developments in the boston terror case.

a conclusion on the battle over what to do with tamerlan tsarnaev's remains. plus his wife makes a huge legal news. all coming up next on "news nation." conservative. very logical thinker. (laughs) i'm telling you right now, the girl back at home would absolutely not have taken a zip line in the jungle. (screams) i'm really glad that girl stayed at home. vo: expedia helps 30 million travelers a month find what they're looking for. one traveler at a time. expedia. find yours.

a body at rest tends to stay at rest... while a body in motion tends to stay in motion. staying active can actually ease arthritis symptoms. but if you have arthritis, staying active can be difficult. prescription celebrex can help relieve arthritis pain so your body can stay in motion. because just one 200mg celebrex a day can provide 24 hour relief for many with arthritis pain and inflammation. plus, in clinical studies, celebrex is proven to improve daily physical function so moving is easier. celebrex can be taken with or without food. and it's not a narcotic. you and your doctor should balance the benefits with the risks. all prescription nsaids, like celebrex, ibuprofen, naproxen and meloxicam have the same cardiovascular warning. they all may increase the chance of heart attack or stroke, which can lead to death. this chance increases if you have heart disease or risk factors such as high blood pressure

or when nsaids are taken for long periods. nsaids, like celebrex, increase the chance of serious skin or allergic reactions or stomach and intestine problems, such as bleeding and ulcers, which can occur without warning and may cause death. patients also taking aspirin and the elderly are at increased risk for stomach bleeding and ulcers. don't take celebrex if you have bleeding in the stomach or intestine, or had an asthma attack, hives, other allergies to aspirin, nsaids or sulfonamides. get help right away if you have swelling of the face or throat, or trouble breathing. tell your doctor your medical history. and find an arthritis treatment for you. visit celebrex.com and ask your doctor about celebrex. for a body in motion. our seafood dinner for two for just 25 dollars! first get salad and cheddar bay biscuits. then choose from a variety of seafood entrées. plus choose either an appetizer or a dessert to share. offer ends soon at red lobster! where we sea food differently. a great cup of coffee should be easy as one, two... well, just one.

new single serve cafe collections from maxwell house now available for use in the keurig k-cup brewer. always good to the last drop. hi, everyone. i'm tamron hall. we're following developing news out of arizona. jodi arias back in court for the next phase of her trial. will the jury now sentence her to death after being convicted of first-degree murder? if they do, arias will join 125 people currently on arizona's death row. just three of them are women. no woman has been executed in arizona in 83 years. yesterday, arias teared up when a 12-person jury delivered their verdict, guilty of murdering her former boyfriend, travis alexander. moments after learning her fate and while still in the courthouse, arias showed no emotion in an interview with fox

station. she said she would rather face death. >> i believe death is the ultimate freedom so i would rather have my freedom as soon as i can get it. >> after that interview, the maricopa county sheriff's office put her on suicide watch and prevented her from doing any more interviews until sentencing is complete. that process could last up to a month. diana has been following the trial for us. she is in phoenix. let me talk before we get to today's event. this interview with jodi arias, this again, right after she learned that she was convicted of first-degree murder. she did this interview. no emotion. and even talked about the fact that her family has a history of people living a long time. so the thought of her spending many, many years behind bars was more than she could handle at this point. >> reporter: absolutely. let me tell you that interview took her attorneys and her family by surprise. no one knew she was p